AMERICAN MARKETING ASSOCIATION
ACADEMIC DIVISION – SPECIAL INTERST GROUPS
SIG LEADERS’ GUIDE
Updated 5.20.16
ACADEMIC DIVISION MISSION STATEMENT
The AMA Academic Division is a global organization of marketing educators. Our principal mission is to lead, encourage, support and recognize the development, dissemination and utilization of marketing knowledge and thought by:
· Facilitating knowledge exchange and marketing problem solving among marketing educators, practitioners, and public policymakers.
· Offering opportunities for networking, career development and scholarly activities relevant to marketing educators.
· Fostering a culture for excellence in teaching.
· Supporting global initiatives for marketing educators.
· Utilizing cutting-edge technology to enhance our activities and offerings.
· Facilitating the application of marketing knowledge and tools to improve society.
ACADEMIC SIG LEADER RESOURCES
The below resources can be found on AMA.com:
· SIG Leadership Guide
· Important SIG Leadership Deadlines
· SIG Annual Budget and Incoming Leadership Form and Submission Links
· SIG Award Ordering Form
OVERVIEW OF SIG CONCEPT
Marketing is a discipline that has both a holistic/integrative purpose and distinct areas of focus. In order to facilitate specialization, in 1993 the AMA Academic Division inaugurated the concept of special interest groups (SIGs). However, as marketers, we must not allow the overall nature and scope of our academic discipline to become fragmented such that we lose sight of the overarching nature of marketing. Having assessed the first sixteen years of SIGs within the Academic Division, the Academic Council (the leadership board of the AMA Academic Division) in 2010 initiated several important changes to the SIG system. These changes are incorporated into this revised SIG Leaders’ Guide.
AMA Academic Division SIGs provide opportunities for learning, sharing, networking, and other professional interchange among members who hold particular common topical interests. Two overriding objectives of SIGs are (1) to provide high quality member services through member involvement and (2) to increase the sense of belonging for academicians who join AMA.
NATURE OF SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS
Characteristics that describe SIGs include the following:
Special Interest Topic
A SIG is organized around a specific interest topic or topics in marketing.
Not Defined by Geography
Unlike professional or collegiate chapters, which are defined geographically or institutionally, SIGs serve the needs of any AMA Academic Division member regardless of geographic location. Contemporary communication technology is used to link SIG members together.
Flexible
SIGs are encouraged to develop and implement flexible approaches to their activities inasmuch as they operate without the advantage of geographical proximity of members.
New Leadership Opportunities
SIGs offer new leadership opportunities for AMA Academic Division members, increasing the avenues for growth and leadership as volunteers.
Inclusive
Any member of the AMA Academic Division can join SIGs. All members of a SIG have voting privileges in elections for officers of that SIG. SIG officers are responsible for developing value-adding benefits for members of the SIG, and for communicating regularly with all members of the SIG.
Goal-driven
SIGs submit an annual plan to the Academic Council, including a list of activities and a detailed budget request. SIGs are funded based on these plans (more on this later).
MEMBERSHIP IN SIGs
Membership in SIGs is open to AMA Academic Division members. Cancellation or forfeiture of membership in the AMA will automatically terminate an individual’s SIG membership. Services will be provided only to individuals who are members of the AMA.
The AMA Academic Council encourages and supports initiative and creativity among the SIGs. The SIGs are a vital feature of the benefits afforded academic members of AMA. Attention to the guidelines in this document ensures all SIGs are best serving their constituents.
SIGs are expected to maintain a minimum of 100 members. AMA members can petition for a new SIG when a minimum of 50 members indicate an interest in joining the SIG upon renewal of their membership. New SIGs will have three years to achieve a level of 100 members. Existing SIGs that fall below this number will have two years to bring the number back up.
SIG ELECTIONS
Incoming SIG Leadership is reported to the AMA Support Center. All SIGs must be able to demonstrate a democratic process of election of officers, including ballots sent to all members, with a slate of candidates standing for election at least every two years. Although any position on the ballot may be uncontested, contested elections are encouraged. SIGs will handle the mechanics of the distribution of ballots for SIG elections. SIGs who hold their own elections will provide documentation to the AMA Support Center. This slate must be solicited via broadcast correspondence with the SIG’s entire membership. The goal of this process is to maximize the involvement of SIG members in SIG officer elections. The new officers will begin their term on July 1st.
“Chair” and “Vice-Chair” labels for officers will be adopted by all SIGs. SIGs must have multiple officers, including a Chair, Chair-Elect and a Vice-Chair for Communication. Please note: Each SIG is required to submit their new leadership contact information to AMA Support Center.
Other Vice-Chair positions may vary from SIG-to-SIG depending on individual SIG needs. For SIGs with web sites hosted by AMA Support Center, the Vice-Chair for Communication is responsible for submitting information relevant to their SIG to AMA Support Center for posting on the SIG’s web site. For SIGs that host their own web sites, the Vice-Chair for Communication is responsible for ensuring timely and relevant information is posted to the SIG’s web site. SIG web sites not hosted by AMA must have a link on the AMA web site and vice-versa. In addition, the Vice-Chair for Communication should actively and regularly correspond with membership of his/her SIG. SIG officers should attend as many SIG-sponsored events as possible.
Budgets/Plans/Reporting
1. Each SIG’s annual budget is based on the number of SIG members as of December 1st of each year. Fifteen dollars is allocated to the respective SIG budget for each member. Each individual SIG will receive information about its annual budget for the coming year as soon as possible after December 1st. Each individual SIG must submit an annual plan. These plans will be reviewed by the Academic Council to ensure that SIG activities:
a. Add member value and are consistent with our academic mission of scholarship and teaching and include communication with SIG membership and support professional development.
b. Promote interaction between SIG membership and practitioners and/or between other SIGs.
c. Include as much of the SIG membership as possible.
d. Do not provide disproportionate benefits to a single or few members of the SIG.
e. Do not provide cash awards. (Award programs are encouraged, and SIG funds can be used for plaques and items of recognition. Cash awards must be raised from outside sources.)
Plans and budgets that adhere to these guidelines will normally be approved. If there are cases where the activities do not seem to add value to many SIG members or the budget allocations seem excessive, the Academic Council will ask for more justification to support the planned activities and budget. A final decision will be based on the additional information provided by the SIG. Since it is difficult to predict actual expenditures for specific activities, there will be flexibility in moving budget amounts across activities proposed in the plan as long as the total SIG budget amount for the year is not exceeded.
2. A competitive fund to support special SIG activities will be available each year. This fund includes $5 per member of the Academic Division plus $5 for each additional SIG membership by an Academic Member as determined on December 1 of each year. All SIGs can apply for support of special activities by submitting a proposal by March 15. The Academic Council SIG Committee will review the proposals to determine those that will be supported given the funds available. The best proposals will be those that incorporate one or more of the following:
a. Activities that add member value and are consistent with our academic mission of scholarship and teaching and include communication with SIG membership and support professional development.
b. Activities that promote interaction between SIG membership and practitioners and/or other SIGs.
c. Activities that focus on Academic Council special initiatives, such as thought leadership, ethics, and doctoral education.
d. Activities that have the potential for sustainability.
e. Activities that have the potential and a plan to be self-supporting in the future.
Guidelines
All SIGs must prepare and submit to the AMA Support Center an annual plan (period July 1 - June 30) with the following required content:
1. Names, titles, and terms of all SIG officers.
2. Recap of key deliverables and activities for the current year. Emphasize how members of the SIG were served. Indicate the status of performance versus budget.
3. Goals for next year. Through their goals, each SIG should demonstrate its commitment to furthering thought leadership and professional development in its interest area as well as in the discipline of marketing as a whole.
4. Planned deliverables and activities for next year, including a budget request that estimates expenditures for each activity. Emphasize how members of the SIG will be served.
The Academic Council SIG Committee is available to work with SIGs as necessary in preparing these plans (more on the AC SIG Committee later).
The Academic Council has been given the responsibility to oversee the SIGs, and thus has the right to withhold budget access and/or invoke other sanctions, and to potentially drop that group as a recognized SIG if the SIG does not submit an annual plan or is not properly serving its members.
RELATIONSHIP OF SIGS TO ACADEMIC COUNCIL
The Academic Council is the elected leadership group of the AMA Academic Division. A committee within the Academic Council, the SIG Committee, will serve as a liaison and mentors between the SIG and the Academic Council. The liaison role is NOT an “office” in the SIG; rather, it is a point of contact for the SIG to facilitate continuity and strong two-way communication, both SIG-to-Academic Council and Academic Council-to-SIG. In particular, the SIG Committee should be useful to the SIG in developing its annual plan/budget request and when questions relevant to the functioning of the SIG need answers. Thus, SIG officers are encouraged to communicate regularly with the members of the SIG Committee.
SIG INVOLVEMENT AT SUMMER AND WINTER AMA CONFERENCES
SIGs are strongly encouraged to have a significant presence at the Summer and Winter AMA Conferences. SIGs may host business meetings, receptions, and other events at both conferences. Each SIG is required to submit to the AMA Support Center their requests via the online form. SIG receptions will not be scheduled at times that conflict with general conference sessions, general conference receptions or the conference luncheon.
SIGs may also contribute to the conference program. For each conference, the co-chairs design a track specialty for SIG special sessions. These can feature panels, featured papers, general addresses, etc. SIGs submit session proposals using the same system as competitive papers, posters and other special sessions. The track chair(s) review all SIG sessions and provide feedback to ensure quality, continuity, and fairness. The track chair(s) may provide suggested changes to position the SIG session for success. SIG sessions are typically scheduled during the same block(s) of time (space permitting). For additional information on SIG sessions, please contact Lynn Reyes, .
IMPORTANT OPERATING ISSUES
SIGs are encouraged to function synergistically within the AMA Academic Division structure. It is important that they support the AMA Academic Division Mission and Vision. In addition, SIGs must operate in conformance with the policies and legal and financial boundaries of the overall AMA and the AMA Constitution and Bylaws, and all SIG activities need to conform to the AMA Statement of Ethics. Copies of these documents are available from AMA Support Center. SIGs must be clearly identified as affiliates of the AMA.
Expenses that are not approved in the SIG’s annual plan will not be reimbursed except under exceptional circumstances, and then only if requested in advance through the AMA Support Center.
The AMA logo must be used on any published or electronically posted SIG materials. Camera-ready and electronic logotypes are available.
SIG activities that involve non-AMA groups or publications must have prior written approval from the President of the AMA Academic Division. In the case of publication of materials, the AMA retains the right of first refusal for any publication.
Any proposed SIG award must be reviewed and approved by the Academic Council for approval prior to announcement or implementation. Any proposed named SIG award and any proposed named major award that intends to pay a cash prize must include an endowment to the AMA Foundation. These endowments have minimum dollar requirements.
PUBLIC POSTURE OF SIGs
SIGs may communicate with other organizations in matters that relate to their areas of special interest. In doing so, the SIG speaks and acts only for itself and in no way represents the AMA unless a prior arrangement has been approved by AMA Support Center. If the SIG speaks with the official backing of the AMA, the extent and limitations of that communication must be delineated and must receive prior approval by AMA Support Center.
A SIG, SIG officer, or SIG member does not have the authority to act as an AMA spokesperson. However, AMA may designate a SIG member as the responsible individual in a specialty field and authorize this person to speak for the Association in matters related to that field.
In the event that a SIG expresses a policy in conflict with AMA official positions, AMA Support Center will instruct the Academic Council to evaluate such differences of opinion and determine whether the continuance of the SIG holding these views is in the best interest of the Association. If those differences are not in the best interests of the Association, procedures will be implemented to dissolve the SIG.
No AMA volunteer has the authority to sign contracts or other legal documents on behalf of AMA. Only such documents signed by an authorized member of the AMA Support Center staff are valid.
PROMOTING INTERACTION AMONG ACADEMIC SIGS
Opportunities exist for SIGs to develop relationships among themselves for the benefit of their members. Such endeavors are encouraged. These may take the form of joint programming or other strategic partnerships or alliances among SIGs. The Academic Council SIG Committee can provide support for such initiatives on behalf of the Academic Council.
ESTABLISHING A NEW SIG
The decision to create a SIG can be initiated by any group of AMA Academic Division members who constitute an appropriate threshold number of persons willing to maintain the SIG's activity (see requirements below). Final approval for SIG formation rests with the AMA Academic Council, upon review of appropriate documentation, the Academic Council will decide the appropriateness and relevance of adding the SIG.